1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to vascular bypass grafts and, in particular, to surgically implanted grafts which increase blood flow and reduce clotting.
2. Related Art
Vascular disease is a leading cause of morbidity and mortality in the United States and throughout the world. The causes of vascular disease include diabetes, hypertension, renal failure, and smoking as well as many other etiologies. Vascular disease can affect any blood vessel in the body and commonly involves the coronary arteries, carotid arteries and the arteries of the lower extremities. The disease is caused by cholesterol, plaque, and calcium deposits which cause vascular wall thickening. Vascular wall thickening occludes the afflicted vessels by narrowing them, which reduces or in some cases, completely blocks blood flow.
Vascular disease is currently treated in several different ways. Patients may engage lifestyle changes, changes to diet and exercise, and medical therapies such as cholesterol lowering drugs. However, for some patients, these non-invasive treatments are insufficient and surgical or invasive intervention such as bypass surgery or angioplasty are necessary.
A patient undergoing bypass surgery has a bypass graft, surgically implanted. The bypass graft provides a substitute route for blood flow to bypass an occluded region. The bypass graft is a tube structure with two ends. One end attaches on one end before the region of vascular occlusion, and on the other end to the patient's vascular system downstream of the occlusion. In this manner, the bypass graft improves the patient's blood flow around the occlusion.
The majority of bypass grafts function well over time, however, in a significant number of patients the bypass grafts themselves become occluded. Where a bypass graft becomes occluded, the patient must undergo another surgery to place a second graft or to repair the original graft.
As a result, there is a need in the art for a bypass graft that can provide a route for blood flow while preventing occlusion which leads to graft failure. The description herein enables such a bypass graft as well as a method of implanting the bypass graft.